Improved regenerator-furnace



. iINITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

IIVIPROVED REGENERATOR-FURNACE.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 4l ,788, dated March1,1864.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, CHARLES WILLIAM SIEMENS and FREDERICK SIEMENS,residents of Great George Street, Westminster, in or near the city ofLondon, of the Kingdom of Great Britain, have made a new and usefulinyention having reference to furnaces of various kinds; and we dohereby declare the same to be fully described in the followingspecification and represented in the accompanying drawings, of which-Figure l is a top view, Fig. 2 a longitudinal section, Fig. 3 atransverse section, Fig. 4 a rear elevation, and Fig. 5 a frontelevation, of a puddling-furnace with our said invention applied to it.Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section taken through the air-valves andpassages of the two outermost or air regenerators, to be hereinafterdescribed. Fig. 7 is a transverse section taken through one of theoutermost regenerators.

The object of our invention is not only to economise heat or to save andutilize much of it that is generally wasted by being allowed to escapeinto and through the chimney of a furnace, but to produce heat by thecombustion of gases and atmospheric air in mixture, the gases beingderived from coal 0r other fuel by a furnace such as we shallhereinafter eX- plain, or by any other Suitable means or appa-L ratus.

In carrying out our invention in its application to a furnace forpuddling iron or for any other purpose where the furnace is to be heatedto a highdegree, we arrange four of what we term the regenerators belowthe level of the bed of the furnace, and when all or any of them may beplaced immediately underneath the furnace, we form underneath the lattera space for the circulation of cold air, the top of the regenerator orregenerators,

y which may be immediately underneath such space,being duly covered.Passages lead from the upper part of two of these regenerators into thefurnace or into a channel or passage communicating with one end thereof.Similar passages lead from the two remaining regenerators and in asimilar manner communicate with the opposite end ofthe furnace. Thelower parts of the four regenerators have passages leading into themrespectively.

To one of they regenerators of each pair, at either end o f the furnace,the passage leading into its lower part is to open into the atmosphere,so as to supply the regenerator with atmospheric air. The passageleading into the lower part of the other regenerator of the pair is agas-conduit for supplying its regenerator with gas. The several passagescommunicate with a ue or chimney, and have valves and reversing-ydampers, by means of which currents of air and combustible gas or gasesmay be directed through the furnace and the whole system ofregenerators, in the following Inanner: A current of air is to be causedto flow into the lower part and up through o ne of the regenerators ofone of the two pairs of them. At the same time a current of gas is to bemade to flow into the lower part of the other regenerator of Such pair.After ascending through their regenerators or between the bricks of themass of loosely-piled brick-work or other refractory material makingpart of Such regenerator, the said aerial and gaseous currents unite andilow into the furnace where they are to be red. The heated volatileproducts or spent gases resulting from the combustion of the saidcurrents of air and gas will ow out of the furnace and into and downthrough the two remaining generators, and after circulating through themasses of brick-work or refractory material of which such regeneratorsare composed in part the said spent products will be directed into andwill escape by the chimney. Vhen the last two regenerators may have beensufficiently heated, the direction of the aerial and gaseous currents isto be reversed-that is to say, the currents of air and gas are to becaused to enter thetwo lastmentioned regenerators separately-that is tosay, air is to pass into one and gas into the other. In ascendingthrough the regenerators, the air and gas will be heated or will absorbfrom the masses of brick-work much of the heat previouslyimparted tothem, after which the two currents will unite and flow into the furnace,and there will be inflamed and will produce a flame of very greatintensity or heat. -The spent products of combustion will flow out ofthe furnace and thence down through the remaining two regenerators, and,after imparting their heat to them or having gas to the regenerators.

it more or less abstracted by them, will be directed into and caused toescape by the chimney. The s'upplying aerial and gaseous currents arethus to be thrown through the pairs of regenerators alternately, theircombustible products escaping through .the dischargingpair and servingtoheat them, while they in turn serve to heat the aerial and gaseouscurrents when caused to flow through them. V

Before proceeding to more fully describe our invention,we will explain agasfgenerator such as may be employed in connection there with, the saidgenerator being shown in vertical section in Fig. S. One or more ofthese generators may be used in connection with a conduit or conduitsfor the conveyance of the ln this gas-generator O is a hopper or induct,into and through which the coal and fuel are to be introduced, the saidhopper being closed by means of a cover, a, after it may have received asupply of fuel. From the hopper the fuel descends .an inclined plane,I), composed of fire-brick 'or other proper refractory or heating-resisting material, it being inclined at an angle of about forty-five degreesto the horizon. From thence the fuel passes upon a firegrate, Q, havinga less inclination. Over this grate, but at a su'liicient height fromthe same to allow a deep layer of fuel to intervene, there is an arch,lt, of firebrick.` This arch, after having been heated to a considerabledegree by the fire on the grate, will radiate heat on the fresh fuelwhile it may be passing down the plane l, and thus will aid in causingthe decomposition and volatilization of the fuel, which will beafterward completed by the fire in the furnace and by the atmosphericair which may enter through the grate Q. The air, on passing through thehighly-heated fuel lying upon the grate, will be decomposed intocarbonicacid gas with a certain proportion of nitrogen. Afterward, onpassing up through the thick layer of fuel in a less state of combustionor incandcscence, it will become transformed into carbonio oxide, and inthis state will pass over. the surface ofthe fuel resting on the planel?, where itwill mix with the gases evolved from the same, and finallyescape by the passage S and into the vertical pipe T, leading into theconduit U, by which it will be conveyed to the regenerators.

The aperture V atthe top of the generator is to enable a person tointroduce a poker into the fuel for the purpose of stirring it from timeto time. A valve,w,in the pipe T answers to close the latter as occasionmay require.V By means of a pipe, k, leading into a conductor,@',watermay be led into the generator in asmall stream. This smallcurrent of water, falling on the fuel, becomes vaporized. i The vapor,acting on any hot particles of carbon rising up with the gases, willcombine with the same and form two combustible gases-viz., carbonic`oxide and hydrogen.

Te do not confine our invention to the einployment of this specific formor kind of gasgenerator, as there may be others which may be employed togood advantage, the whole depending on circumstances. Bymeans of thegas-generator, or, in other words, by decomposing the solid fuel-such ascoal, lignite, peat, &c.by means of a separate apparatus, we not onlyavoid the introduction of such fuel into thefurnace, but we are enabledto heat the gas to a high degree, and to mix it with heated airpreparatory to its being conducted into the furnace er place designedfor it-s eo1ubustion and to be heated thereby. absence of any solidcarbon or ashes in the working-chamber of the furnace operations may becarried on in an open furnace, which hitherto it has only been possibleto conduct in covered vessels or pots. Thus we can melt flint, extrawhite, and other superior qualities of glass in open pots, fire-potterywithout inclosing the same in saggers, or melt steel and othersubstances upon an open bed or hearth without injury.

It is also important in many operations that the state of pressure ofthe gases in the furnace should be under entire control,and shouldsometimes exceed and at other times exactly balance that of theatmosphere, in order to prevent the egress of flame from or the ingressof air into the furnace on opening apertures for the approach of theworkmen attending the operation to be carried on, such as blowing glassor puddling iron. For this purpose we arrange with the furnace fourregenerators, as hereinafter described, and to operate as beforespecified. In some cases, however, where no great heat may be required,or where the gas may be very rich in combustible matter, the tworegenerators intended for heating the combustible gases may besuppressed, and mere passages substituted; but we generally prefer theemployment of the four regenerators.

In applying our improvements to glass-fu rnaces we find it sometimesadvantageous to melt the materials composing the glass in open pots, andto cover the latter with movable lids while working the metal out in theusual way. Vhen it is required to accomplish secondary operations inseparate furnaces-for instance, to heat annealing-furnaces or lears inthe manufacture of glass-we' accomplish this without providing separateregenerators, but by arranging branch channels leading from the upperportion of the four regenerators to the lear or furnace to be heatedwhere they ljoin in combustion. Dampers of fire-clay or other refractorymaterial are to be provided in that case to these channels to regulatethe flow of the gases according to the direction in which the mainfurnace may be working; or we draw off the mixed gases in a state ofcombustion from the principal furnace. In ring" potteryware, incalcining ores, and other operations it is required that the furnacecharged with these material, after having been heated to the de sireddegree, should cool gradually and completely before it is charged again.In such cases we propose to provide similar furnaces By the side by sideand only one set of four regenerators, which, by means of slides orvalves of fire-clay or other proper refractory material, can be made tocommunicate at intervals with one heated furnace or the other. Duringthe time that one furnace is fired the other is to be allowed to cool tobe discharged and charged again with fresh material, and vice versa. The

regenerators may thus always be kept in Working condition; or we arrangefour or more chambers in such way that they themselves may contain thematerials to be fred,and serve alternately as regenerators and as kilnsto be red or discharged.

In the drawings, Figs. l, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, A is the furnace, ofwhich a is the bed, and b the crown or arch, and c the mouth. Beneaththe bed of the furnace are the four regenerators B B2 B3 B4, eachconsisting in part of a chamber erected of f1re-brick or other suitablematerial, and having a grating, c, extending across its lower part andconstituting part of the upper portion of an arched pas sage, H, I, K,or L, arranged underneath such chamber. Upon this grating is a pile, d,of fire-bricks or other heat-absorbing and indestructible materials, thesame being arranged or stacked in such manner as to leave interstices orspaces between them, so as to enable the air or gas, while passingthrough the pile, to come in contact with the surfaces of the severalparts or bricks thereof. Each of the said regenerators is arched orclosed over at its top, and opens into the furnace by a passage, e,leading out of it and into a common passage, f or f, as shown in `thedrawings. The two passages fflead out of the furnaceA in oppositedirections and from opposite ends thereof.

Directly underneath the bed of the furnace A, and between it and thetops of the two inner regenerators B2 and B3, there is an air chamber orspace, C, which should communicate freely at its opposite sides or endsvwith the at; mosphere, in order that a current of cool air may becaused to continually pass through it for the purpose of maintaining theb ed of the furnace, as well as thearches of the regenerators B2 B3, ata low temperature, and thus protect them from being destroyed by theintense heat within the furnace and regenerators while they may be inoperation.

In rear of the upper parts of the regenerators, and below the furnace,there is an air space or chamber, D, which at intervals is bridged, asshown at g g g. There is also below the space D a sunken space orchamber, E, in which are situated the levers for working the dampers ofthe apparatus. of the space E there is a passage, F, (see Fig. 6,) whichcontinues horizontally in opposite directions, and thence dropsdownward, and at its two extremities opens respectively into the twopassages I-I and L, which extend underneath the two outermostregenerators. Each of these passages H I K L is to be closed at both ofits ends, but the two middle passages, I K, are shown in Fig. 4 as openat their In front rear ends. These middle passages, however, withvertical continuations of them leading into a horizontal passage, N,are, as well as the'said passage N, to be walled up or covered in rear.The same may be said with respect to a gas tube or passage, O', which isto lead from the generator and into the passage N, as shown in Figs. 3and 4. Between the two passages I K there is a smoke-flue, P, into therear part of which there is an opening, Q, leading from the passage F,or a damper-case, B, arranged vertically therein, and having a damper,S, arranged within it, and so as to be capable of being turned by alever, h. There is vanother such damper-case, T', applied in the passageN and opening at its opposite sides into such passage, and also at itstop into the generater-conduit or gas-flue O. Within the case F there isa damper, U, capable of being turned by a lever, z'. Situated over eachof the damper-cases there is a valveopen' ing, V `or W', provided with avalve, X or Y, the whole being arranged as shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

By means of the damper U gas from the passage O may be led into eitherof the passages I K, it being cut off from passing into one while it maybepassing into the other. So, by means of the damper S, air may becaused to iiow, ad Zibitum, into either of the passages H L, it beingcut off from one while it may be passing into the other. The valve Ywill serve to arrest the flowage of air into the passage F. So with thevalve K, it will answer to close off the passage of gas into thedamper-case immediately underneath it. Y

The operation of the said apparatus having been hereinbeforesubstantially` described, we now proceed to point out what we claim asour invention-that is to say:

l. In combination with a furnace, A, and

its chimney or smoke-discharge flue'P, a system or series of air and gasregenerators, B

B2 B3 B4, constructed substantially as specifled, and having conduitsand dampers arranged so that air and gas may be led into .and throughsuch regenerators and furnace and out of the chimney, in manner and s0as to be operated as and for the purpose or purposes hereinbeforedescribed.

2. The arrangement and combination of the air-space or open chamber Cwith the furnace and its system of regenerators, arranged and appliedtogether substantially in manner and so as to operate as described.

8. The arrangement and combination of the air chamber or space D, or thesame and the space E, with the furnace, regenerators, conduits, anddamper-chests applied thereto, the whole being substantially as ,speciedCHARLES WILLIAM 'SIEMELv S. FREDERICK SIEMENS. Witnesses:

Roer. LrNKsoN, G. A. BRYANT, .Y

Both of No. 2 Papes Head Aller, London, gentlemcn.

